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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. cue — a hint
  3. season — of the year
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bark — to shout
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. pitch — completely
  11. cue — for pool
  12. pop — to visit
  13. drill — a practice
  14. pop — music
  15. cue — a signal
  16. kid — to tease
  17. pop — soda
  18. drill — army training
  19. season — in sport
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. kid — child

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com